Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Nick Lodolo hopes his new curveball grip slows the suddenly resurgent offense of the visiting Miami Marlins in Sunday’s rubber match of the teams’ three-game series.
The Marlins, who had scored one run in their previous two games, snapped their four-game road losing streak Saturday with an 8-4 win. Miami outhit Cincinnati 14-8, led by Jakob Marsee’s 4-for-4 performance that also featured a solo home run. Joe Mack contributed three hits, including a solo shot.
Lodolo (3-2, 4.83 ERA) will make his second start since being placed on the 15-day injured list with a blister on July 12. In his last outing, the left-hander didn’t factor into the decision as the Reds lost 5-4 in 10 innings at the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday.
In the 70-pitch outing, he gave up four runs on five hits with no walks and five strikeouts. He yielded a season-high three home runs but said he believes the new curveball grip will help avoid future blister issues.
“The numbers say it’s coming off my hand differently,” Lodolo said. “The question is if it’s enough. I hope the change is good.”
While he’s calling it a curveball, Lodolo knows the pitch could evolve in future starts.
“It’s more of a slider; I don’t know if gyro is the right word,” Lodolo said. “It’s not a huge difference. It’s a bit of a difference. The question is as I keep throwing it, week-to-week-to-week, does the shape stay the same or does it start reverting back to the other one?”
Lodolo is 3-1 in five career starts against Miami, with a 2.22 ERA.
The Marlins will counter with right-hander Eury Perez (6-9, 3.39 ERA), who threw a gem in his last outing. In a 2-0 home win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday, Perez allowed three hits, walked two and struck out seven over seven innings.
All three hits given up by Perez were singles. He will be tasked with slowing Cincinnati rookie Sal Stewart, who pulled into a tie with Washington’s CJ Abrams for the major league lead in RBIs with 91 on a two-run single in the third on Saturday.
“If you look at these last 10 to 12 starts, it’s hard to think of anyone that is really throwing the ball better and suppressing runs like he has,” Miami manager Clayton McCullough said of Perez.
In four career starts against Cincinnati, Perez is 2-1 with a 4.19 ERA. He has 28 strikeouts against six walks over 19 1/3 innings. On April 8, Perez earned the win in a 7-4 home victory, allowing four runs (two earned) on six hits with two walks and six strikeouts over five innings.
On Saturday, seven Marlins contributed at least one hit. Miami also added four walks and two hit batsmen to keep pressure on the Reds’ bullpen. Cincinnati was forced to use three relievers in Miami’s decisive four-run eighth.
“We talked all season about how important it is to get contributors from different people,” McCullough said.
–Field Level Media
